Past, I followed Now, I lead
by Kexy Kewl
Summary: Sequel to Past I disbelieved Now I follow. The War of Scars has begun. And Aadela Felix is ready to make her way up in the world - which involves killing, and making new allies and enemies. And this time, she's going to kill those vampaneze for good.
1. Resolution

**Hi folks! So yeah, I'm back. With my OC Aadela Felix. This is a sequel, as I mentioned, so if you're interested in this piece, then I beg you on my knees to read "Past I disbelieved, Now I follow". **

**Basically, Aadela was a 14 year old girl whose family 3 vampaneze ravaged. She was turned into a half-vampire by her cousin, and taken to the Cirque, where she discovered that it was because of Darren, that somehow her brother - who was an aspiring vampire hunter like her parents - eavesdropped on Darren and Larten, and later eavesdropped on the 3 vampaneze in hope that they could lead him to Darren and Larten. **

**Darren and Aadela fall in love and all that, and it chronicles Aadela's life as a vampire. Aadela's crafted as to suit the first 6 books in the first story. Here, her life follows the last 6 books.**

**So read... and REVIEW. Please. Flames accepted.**

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><p><em>Dear Diary<em>

_The era of war has begun. Its dreary shadow is engulfing everybody. The silence is only a scorching warning for the future, which will be filled by the clangs of swords and cries of pain. They will be lying if they say they're not worried. They as sure as hell are. They're already collapsing. And it's only the beginning. The beginning of the end, perhaps?_

_My name is Aadela Felix. I am a half-vampiress. I've been dragged into this war, this war between the lesser and the greater evil. Perhaps my wording is not quite correct, but the roles they play in this war, can certainly be a bane for those not in our world. The War of the Scars is as potent as a ticking bomb to destroy the whole world, and enslave the whole human race._

_I was a happy girl once. The greater evil came, and destroyed me, and I swore to take revenge. There are many on the side of the greater evil, but I only hunt for two. One down, two more to go. But I am not shy of killing anyone who stops me or in turn, wants to kill me._

_I have seen what many young women wouldn't have. I have experienced and lived deaths, hearbreaks, love, injustice, cruelty, savageness, coldness, arguments, curses, battles and infatuations. And I have experienced the one force which reminds me that I was once a happy, innocent, fourteen year old girl: a force which goes by the name of Darren Shan._

_Love him, hate him, I can't ignore him. He was there with me at times, and never existed in other moments, but his smile, his wit, his bravery, his stubborness: they all haunted me, always._

_Vampires versus vampaneze - who will win? And what will they win? Safety? Dominance? Blood? I don't know. The one person who could've stopped this War was long executed, by falsely recognising him as a traitor - Kurda Smahlt. Not only he, but many are dead. Some I knew, others I didn't. They're as faceless as the ones I'm ready to kill._

_I have nothing to gain or to lose in this war. I'm only driven by my own ambitions. And I'm not going to sit still. Those vampires might think that I'm going to help them win the war because I'm keen to defeat and destroy the vampaneze. Let them think what they want - I know the truth. I'm going to be a General, rise up amongst the ranks of the Undead, and accomplish my mission, after which, my purpose of living is over._

_My dear Vampaneze Duo... here I come._

_AFadela_


	2. Theories and Plans

**OMG Shansters! Did you hear?**

**Me: Hear what, hear what?**

**Darren: I'm getting hitched!**

**Me: Say what, say what?**

**Darren: I'M GETTING MARRIED!**

**Me: Ohhhh...**

**Darren: Why aren't you excited? Hey... is it because, you like... me? Don't worry, you're a great girl and -**

**Me: FREE RIDE AND PARTAAAYYYY TO VAMPIRE MOUNTAIN!**

* * *

><p>"Walden Eshmire was killed en route to the Mountain." Staffen Irve reported. "He was 'posed to give his report."<p>

"And how, exactly, was he killed?" Paris asked.

"Tell-tale signs, Sire! The vampaneze didn't even bother to hide 'em! They're on to somethin', I swear!"

"Thank you, Staffen. You are dismissed." Paris swept a hand over his face. This was becoming too much. Their Generals were being killed left, right and center; the Lord of the vampaneze had arisen and news was getting harder to come by.

"Anything you require, Sire?" Mika, who had been sitting quietly all throughout the report - which was quite a rare feat for him - asked, seeing Paris' dismal look.

"No, Sire. Not for the time being." Paris smiled, but it was a watery smile.

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><p>Darren retreated from the Hall of Princes, after being almost scuffed by Mr. Crepsely. He wouldn't deny that he was tired, but his stubborness and his high goals, which even though reminded Larten about himself, did infuriate him also, and thus Darren was almost scolded in front of Arrow.<p>

He made his way back to his room, intent on meeting Harkat if possible, and catching a good day's sleep more than anything else. It was a few months after the bloodshed at the Mountain, and Darren was as worried about the mysterious vampire killings as were the other Princes and vampires.

He entered his room, stiffling a yawn (since his investiture, he'd been trying to develop more "princely" habits) and almost tripped over when he saw a book levitating above the rocky ground of his room.

"Who... who's there?" Darren asked suspiciously. Damn his mind! _Mr. Crepsely was right_, he thought, as he pondered over the level of tiredness he'd achieved to see a book floating in air.

"What are you talking about?" A face poked from behind the book. Darren uttered a cry of surprise, before he felt his head go light.

"Darren, are you okay? Should I get Vanez?" the face asked again.

"What... what do you think you're doing, scaring me like that!" Darren protested, as he groggily stood up.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Shan."

"You very well do, Felix!"

Aadela frowned. Darren really had a knack of over-complicating things.

"If you're a mouse, then you've every right to be scared." She replied, retreating back to pick up her book.

"No, _you _are the one who's hiding somewhere in the corner of the room and holding up a book in such a way so that it appears that it's levitating!"

"What?" Aadela squinted in confusion. After a moment's pause, she added, "You're out of your mind, Darren. Time to sing rock a bye to you!"

"Heh. I think I'll fall asleep without any lullabies." Darren grinned.

"Well... long time no see!" Aadela settled herself on a cushion.

"Yeah... Been busy, you know."

"What's the latest?"

"Well, another vampire dead. I personally think that the vampaneze have somehow realised that we have killed their clan members."

"They would be idiots not to."

"I wonder how, you know. I mean, we managed to kill many, and interrogate and execute the others and I'm damn sure none escaped. Do you think Mr. Tiny's behind this? He might've come to know about something, you know."

Aadela shrugged. "If I'm hostile with someone, and you're the middleman between us, and suddenly, one fine day, I lose contact with you and a couple of my friends who think you to be their leader for many weeks, when I'm sure that you would send frequent messages to me from the hostile camp, what else should I think? Give Mr. Tiny a rest, Darren."

Darren pondered about what she said. "Hmm... you're correct, but I think the correct expression would be 'one fine _night_'."

"Oh for the love of -!" Aadela left her sentence hanging. "Of all what I said, you caught onto this?"

"Hey, hey, you're correct, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever."

"So, what are you doing nowadays?"

"Just loitering about. Kitchens, Seba, Vanez, you. Oh, and by the way, Harkat's great, thanks for asking!"

"Hey, I was about to ask!" Darren said indignantly.

"Yeah, whatever." Aadela repeated. "So, as I was saying, tomorrow night, I think I'm going to ask Cher if I can begin my General studies." Aaadela was expecting an encouraging or even a negative response from Darren, but he only ogled at her like a fish.

"Really?" He finally managed to splutter out.

"I didn't electrocute you. I only said that I want to become a General."

"No, but seriously?"

"No, jokingly."

"Whoa!" Darren grinned. "You as a General?"

"Whoa!" Aadela mimicked. "You as a Prince?"

Darren shrugged. "Well, I guess you're right there. But I mean, I didn't think you were that war-hungry kind, y'know? Hell, I thought that you hated to be a vampire!"

"I'm not a 'war-hungry kind'. And yes, being a vampire is first on my favourite things to be... from the bottom, of course," Aadela smirked. "But, desperate times call for desperate measures. This time, the vampires have done it. And believe you me, things are about to get bloody soon. And when they do, then why not be in a position when you can command resources and people?"

"But you must prepare for years."

"Again, desperate times call for desperate measures. When they see their men falling, they'll need to send out back-ups, well trained or not."

There was a silence as Darren contemplated this. He knew Aadela's mind. It wasn't the sharpest or the quickest, but it made use of whatever it had in front of it. "You're not doing this for 'strictly service and loyalty' purposes, are you?"

"What more would you expect for my intentions to be 'serviceable' and 'loyal'?" Aadela challenged.

"You know what I'm talking about."

"Alright, I admit. I'm not the most unselfish person in the universe, okay?"

"I already knew." Darren smiled.

"Then why ask?" Aadela grinned.

"We needn't speak if we don't have to... yet we do, right? I needn't have stated it, but I just wanted to say that you've a one trakced mind."

''In a good way or in a bad way?"

"I guess both."

"Look who's being serious now!" Aadela laughed. "In all honesty, seriousness doesn't suit you."

Darren just leant over to kiss her cheek. "Okay, okay. Now get out. I want to sleep."

"Well, then, sleep!"

"Well, then, get out!"

"Why?" Aadela asked mischievously.

"Why?" Darren repeated, exasperated. "Why? Because it won't do to -"

"The one time I want to sleep with you by my side, and you refuse me the _pleasure_?" Aadela put emphasis on the word 'pleasure'. She really didn't want to 'sleep' sleep with him... she just wanted to be with him, and was only pulling his leg.

"Fine! But no one can know about this, okay? Or my ass will be toast!"

"I assure you... No one save you and me will know about it." Aadela cajoled, and bit her lower lip. She really enjoyed pranking.

* * *

><p><strong>You know, exams crush your spirit and creativity. Hence, the long delays. Hopefully cya soon.<strong>


	3. Growing Pains

"Cher!" Aadela ran up to the Hall of Sports.

"I'm busy right now, I'll talk to you later."

"Oh, so you have time to talk to everyone save your assistant?"

"If talking to you means that you'll stop being so catty, then I'll gladly talk to you." Cher stopped and turned around to face her.

Aadela continued on, paying his remark no attention. "I want to commence studies to be a General."

"You what?" Cher asked in disbelief.

"You heard me."

Cher gave an awkward laugh. "Are you serious? Do you know that it's such an enormous and a most vexing responsibility?"

"Yes."

"No, Aadela, that blank, nonchalant face won't do here." Cher frowned. "You would need to become a full vampire sometime soon after your investiture. Which would mean that you'd have to take your Trials twice - once, when - if - you become a General, and once, when, again, if, you become a full vampire."

"I know, Cher."

"And you'll have to throw that disdain of yours towards our cultures and ways aside."

"Of course."

"Sometimes you can be a real idiot, do you know that?" Cher shook his head.

"I'm taking that a 'yes'" Aadela grinned.

"I'll have a word with Vanez. Mind you, he's become only stricter since he lost his second eye."

"What if he doesn't approve?" Aadela asked.

"Oh, no, it's not for him to decline. I'll just be informing him. But if there's trouble, then I'll train you myself. Just like old times." Cher added with a small smile.

Aadela regarded him placidly. Then, she also smiled. "Just like old times." she echoed.

* * *

><p>"You're so busy, nowadays." Aadela sighed.<p>

"Of course. I'm a Prince, you know." Darren replied.

Aadela could only sense the pride in that statement. "Right... And here I was, thinking, that after a few months, the fact had sunk in." She couldn't help but notice that he was rather quiet today. She didn't expect him to be romping about, but when he was with her in those rare moments, he wouldn't be sitting like that.

"What's the matter?" Aadela asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You're sitting quiet today. I know you must be tired, of course, but you do talk to me. Is something the matter?"

"No, nothing."

"Alright." Aadela raised her eyebrows. "Just so you know, Cher has accepted my request to study to be a General."

"Oh, that's good." Darren nodded, absently.

"Darren, you know you can tell me anything, okay?" Aadela patted his arm.

"I'm fine, I told you!" Darren answered, a bit impatiently.

"Suit yourself."

* * *

><p>"So, how's your training going?" Darren asked casually one day.<p>

"It's going..." Aadela paused. "Well, knowing how Vanez is, you can be sure about how it's going."

Darren gave a wry smile. "True."

He didn't need to implore her further, for he could see the tell-tale signs of fatigue, grimness, pain and patience on its brink taking a toll on her. Aadela was no longer looking like the slim slip of a girl she used to be till a few months ago. Instead, she looked drawn out, tired and was bruised all over her body. She had gained a variety of scars, which though didn't threaten her beauty, but looked ugly all the same. Her figure wasn't the slightly curvaceous one which she'd acquired with plentiful but light excercise and light meals, along with the natural body definement given by vampire blood, but more of a rectangular one.

She looked starved even when she'd had a full meal. She used to still smile and joke, but that was rare; not because she was upset, but she was so strained and tired that she could only plop down in her bed for a five hour sleep before she had to go and work out again.

Vanez hadn't changed one bit, even though he was completely blind now. He was still as rigid and as dangerous and a taskmaster as ever. In fact, the only hinderance his blindness had provided was to make him even stricter than before. He used to teach tracking and wrestling, and was not squeamish about using brute force, a kick and a slap for punishment or defiance, box on the ears for laziness or flinging his students for incompetency.

Then there was Cree..._Mr. Crepsley_! He spent half of his time with Darren and the other half in training new Generals. He had been skeptical of her since the very beginning, and she hoped there was some indirect way by which she could tell him that the feeling was mutual, for she was too sly to offend him, even if all she wanted to do was to give him a couple more scars each of a different colour. He was skilled in many varieties of martial arts, she'd to give him that. And often, she would return with something or the other dislocated or cut.

Then there was Arrow. He was a Prince, and though Princes occassionally taught young trainees something or the other, the practice had become more frequent now, what with the threat of the war and all. He taught survival and the rituals, habbits and customs of the vampaneze, so that a General could use them to his or her advantage.

With each passing day, Aadela began to absorb the gravity of the Trials. To think, that she'd have to take ten of them, each as gruelling as the other, was a horrible thought. She'd been worried sick when Darren was taking his Trials, and the thought that she also might get in between the rock and the hard place was too much to bear.

Still, she knew what she was going to do, and that didn't include getting impaled on the stakes.

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><p><em>Dear Diary<em>

_I'm feeling that the training I'm going through is making me weaker instead of strong. I have to keep training the entire night and even during the day. I must warm myself up in the very early evening and go on to practice fighting with weapons till a little before midnight, after which I'm allowed a meal and four hours of rest. After that, I've to go and train in bare-handed fights well till dawn, after which again comes a meal, and rest. Then, it's tracking and survival and other useful bits and pieces to learn, more rest and another meal, and then training for my Trials with Cher._

_Practice with Cher is like sunbathing on a beach, compared to the other training sessions! Cher knows my weaknesses and strengths better, and trains me according to all those. Besides, we'd been training for quite some time before we came to the Mountain. Cher had been sent off initially to investigate the matters, and he brought news which we were all dreading: that we're indeed in war. _

_I was quite surprised when Cher wasn't sent off into the field with many others, but he said that he was still in the Mountain to coordinate attacks, which is quite a big responsibility. Even so, he has already said that time may come when he might need to get out of this comm situation and go into tactical mode. _

_I don't quite understand what's wrong with Darren. Sure, it might be the stress. But is it only the stress? Or have I been brash again? I remember the day in the Cirque when we first met. And I remember the day when he barged up to me and asked me what the hell the matter was. I think we might switch positions soon._

_I hope whatever it is, it's nothing more serious than me offending or upsetting him somehow or the other._

_AFadela_

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><p><strong>Things... are building up. Catchya later, alligators!<strong>


	4. Distant Dreams

**So... I'm back from the dead. And hello to all of you... readers and lazy readers. Now, it's my summer vacations, so hopefully I can upload minimum 3, max 5 chapters, maybe more, for this month and a half. Hope you're all well. Stay tuned and enjoy!**

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><p>A year more of war. Of a war, which you could pretend very easily that it never even existed, let alone talked about, but one, whose consequences you could see when a person whom you know - not necessarily your friend or enemy - may come limping... or worse, dead.<p>

The year hadn't been much. They were full of grim existence, training, physical pains and boredom. Aadela tried to find out where the girl who'd longed for freedom from this mountainous cage had disappeared, but didn't succeed. It wasn't as if she'd given up and hope or desire for smelling fresh air, feeling sunshine and running wild again, but she was not hung up about it.

Growing pains, she muttered, as she put down another war report in a heap of hundred other ones, as she took up another report, from another heap as staggering as the former. Each heap was full of parchment enough to bore her to tears. Those two years, she could say without any doubt, had been the most boring and the longest of her life - yet.

As weeks had passed, her body grew stronger, and her tutors began finding less and less time for her, in favour of giving a precious few minutes to those other inexperienced brats. The quietness in the Mountain was only intensified, as if that was even possible. Everybody suddenly turned even more busy. The best of people (and Aadela count count them on the fingertips of her right hand) had become short tempered, and no one was without their own set of complaints.

Darren almost seemed to live in the Hall of the Princes, and Harkat himself was too busy to provide any company. She'd begun to like the Little Person. She knew she would be called demented, but instead of finding the Little People creepy, like most did, she found them cute.

Her form slouched on the wooden table. Her lips seemed to kiss the table, and her left arm was raised on it, the hand ruffling her hair into furthur more knots. She had to go see Darren. She was bored, she was tired, and she hadn't seen him in days. Never mind the fact that they could throw her onto her buttocks if she decided to barge up to the Hall - she was ready for any action and excitement in the slightest. Never mind that he might be too tired to see her - she would shake him awake and almost strangle him in her bear hug.

She got up, rather unsteadily, from her chair and collapsed ungracefully onto the hard rocky floor.

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><p>Darren's blood was pounding in his temples. Pounding so painfully, that he thought he might fall asleep from the pain of it before the tiredness took over.<p>

"This is so _bloody_ horrible!" He grunted. It was a rare moment of peace and respite.

"The duties of a Prince are much more than mere fun, Darren." Mr. Crepsely replied in his usual pompous manner.

"Oh, stuff it!" Darren weakly pushed him away. "I'm so tired, and I'm so bored!"

"You may rest if you wish." Mr. Crepsely suggested. He knew that however tired his assistant might be, he would not take the advice to rest from anyone - especially him.

"And be woken up an hour later? No, please! I wanna sleep for a week, at least, thank you very much!"

"That is not feasible. However, you may go with Harkat and I will cover up for you. We both know that you want to talk to him, of course."

"Well, I want to sleep first." Darren groaned.

"And not see Ms. Felix either?" Mr. Crepsely raised an eyebrow.

The intent of the question might or might not have been sly, but Darren didn't feel like responding anyhow. "I'm a Prince, right? Why can't I summon her?"

"I am not sure that she will be very responsive to your 'summonings', as you say." Mr. Crepsely remarked drily.

"Go away!"

"Suit yourself." Mr. Crepsely replied stiffly and walked off.

Darren slouched down into the chair, almost curling up in it. It was completely true he was tired and in dire need of rest, and a hobby, but he didn't feel up to seeing his madame. Yes, he admitted to himself, that she was his 'madame'. He pondered why that was so. He used to take every little chance to see her, but now, when he had those extremely rare times when he was free and not tired, he didn't particularly wish to be with her. He used to go off wandering with Harkat, chatting with Vanez or lazing around, watching Seba order his assistants, but never her.

Guess priorities change, his thoughts rumbled in his mind before he fell asleep.

* * *

><p><em>Darren knew he was dreaming. His vampiric senses allowed him to easily lucid dream.<em>

_"I'm sorry. I'm in a really bad mood. I don't feel so good." He pleaded. He caught an arm, but he could only see her hair - dark._

_Even though she turned around, he couldn't quite see her face._

_"You _do _look under the weather." She cooed. He could sense her face softening and her body was letting go off the tension. She was strong to touch, pleasant voice. He knew for a fact it was Aadela. He was happy it was her, for it eased him off his guilt that he was not meeting her in real._

_"I'd have invited you along, but you know how things stand with my dad." He replied, walking with her. Wait - _dad? _He wasn't going to meet his dad! And wouldn't Aadela be pointing exactly that out to him? _

_"Aren't you afraid of the dark?" She asked. Why would he be?_

_"No. What's to be afraid of?" Suddenly, he began to develop a feeling of deja-vu._

_"I know it's silly, but I'm always half-afraid that a vampire or werewolf's going to jump out and attack me." _

_He lurched at that and twisted around to see her, and his heart stopped._

_It wasn't his madame._

_It was Debbie Hemlock._

_She advanced on him, and closed the distance between them. Instead of kissing him, as Darren originally thought, she was patting his shoulder gently, while at the same time, very firmly. She kept doing that and finally he raised his hand onto hers to stop her._

* * *

><p>"Darren! Wake up, Darren!" Aadela was waking him up from his strange slumber, during which he'd been making funny faces - from restful, to frowning, to confused - in rapid succession. She was gripping his shoulder and she got the fright of her life when he put his hand onto hers.<p>

He opened his eyes, and couldn't help but blurt out, "Bloody hell!", in a groggy voice.

"Honestly, if you're going to go mad, then I think we should push you under a waterfall. Time you had a bath anyway!"

"What, uh, what was I doing?"

"It looked to me that you were having a seizure." Aadela raised her eyebrows. "Were you?"

"'Course not!" Darren protested. It was not the dream which had shaken him - it was _why _he had dreamed it, a dream which was a reality four-five years before.

"What were you dreaming about?"

"I don't remember." Darren surveyed the area. "Hey, this is my room! How did I get here?"

"I went into the Hall and picked you up and brought you here." Aadela replied gravely.

"You really did?" Darren asked, dumbstruck.

"Don't be silly, Shan." Aadela playfully punched him. "Crepsely brought you here. Or rather, ordered the guards to. I was just passing by and saw you writhing and all."

"Oh, okay."

Aadela tenatively looked at home. "You _are _alright, aren't you?"

Darren looked up to her and beamed, genuinely pleased to see her. "Of course."


End file.
